Influence of surfactant concentration on laser-based gold nanoparticle formation and stability

Abstract

The time evolution of gold nanoparticle (AuNP) yields by in-situ laser irradiation from bulk gold in aqueous solutions containing the surfactant sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS) at concentrations above and below the critical micelle concentration in water is reported. These studies are augmented by transmission electron microscopy images of AuNP samples at each SDS concentration recorded after 90 min of laser irradiation. The results show that while a low concentration of SDS plays a role in the formation kinetics, there is no apparent influence of the SDS concentration around the surfactant critical micelle concentration on particle size during AuNP production.